Art of rolling metal ingots into thin plates or sheets.



No. 69|;565; Patented 1an. v-2|,' |902,

E. NonTuN.

ABT 0F ROLLING METAL INGUTS INTO THIN.- PLATES 0R SHEETS. 1 l (Application med .my 1. 1901.) (No Model.) 2 shuts-sheet INVENTOR.l L/rm C T EYs s mi Nanms mns ca. vno'ro-Lrmo., wAsmNcToN. n. c.

No. 69|,565. Patented s an. 2|, [9oz E.NonToN.

ART 0F ROLLING METAL INGOTS INTO THIN PLATES 0R SHEETS.

' l (Appmation med July 1, 1901.) (Hummel.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

W/NEss/ss.- INVENTOR. v yJmmL L l I ATTORNEY.;

THE Nonms vEYEns co. PHOYQLITHU, wAsI-Non, D. C

yUNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDWIN NORTON, OF NETV YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO AMERIOANOAN COMPANY, OF JERSEY CITY, NEWJERSEY, A CORPORATION OF -NE W JERSEY.

ART 0F ROLLING METAL lNGOTS INTO THIN PLATES OR SHEETS.

SPEGIF'LGATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 691,565, dated January 21, 1902.

Application filed July l. 1901. Serial No. 66,659. y(N0 specimens T0 all whom, may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWIN NORTON, acitizen of the United States,residing in New York city, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented a new and useful vImprovement in the Art of Rolling Metal Ingots into Thin Plates or Sheets, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in the art, process, system, or method of rolling iron or steel ingots into plates or sheets for use in the manufactu re of tin-plate or for other purposes.

Heretofore in the manufacture or rolling of thin sheets of iron or steel for tin-plate a metal ingot of any convenient weight and dimensions is first rolled into a bar-plate, ordinarily about eight inches wide and threeeighlhs of an inch in thickness and fifty feet more or less in length, according to the size of the ingot. In the most modern method this rolling of the ingot into the bar-plate is done at a single heat, but in many mills is done in two separate heats or steps. This bar-plate is then sheared transversely of its length into small bars, each about eight inches wide by, say, twenty inches long, for use in making,forexample,twenty by twentyeight inch tin-plate, which is one of the most customary sizes, the length into which the bars are cut corresponding to and vary/'ing with or dependent upon the width of/ singles or of the finished product produced therefrom. These small bars are then reheated and separately rolled into smallsheets, ordinarily called singles,77 the same being in the case supposed, say, about twenty inches in width, net, (about one-fourth of an inch eX- tra being allowed for trimming or cropping,) and about twenty-eight inches, net, in length, and about one-tenth of an inch in thickness, the rolling being done in the cross direction from that of the previous step or iugot-rolling-that is to say, in the direction of the smaller dimension of the bars. During this step, which may for convenience and sake of' distinction be termed the bar-rolling or breaking-down step, two of the bars are always and necessarily handled together, 5o heated together, rolled together, and kept continuously together, so that the" bars will secure the same treatment, and thus when rolled 4out into singles be capable of being matched or superimposed without too ex? travagantl waste in cropping or trimming. The singles thus produced are then matched or superim posed, reheated, and further rolled in pairs or packs of two, this rolling being again done in the same direction of the length of the singles, so that the original length dimension of the bar which is the width dimension of the finished sheet designed to be produced in the case supposed may be continuouslypreserved. Thissteporrollingdoubles the length of the singles, making that of the pair about fifty-six inches, net, or double thel length of the finished product in the case supposed. The sheets or packs of two are then folded or doubled, reheated, and again rolled in packs of four or four thicknesses, the lengthv being thus again drawn ont to about fifty-six inches, net, and then the sheets are finally again doubled, reheated, and rolled in packs of eight or eight thicknesses until they are reduced to the required gage, the finished pack of eight being in the case supposed (that of making thin sheets twenty by twenty-eight) fifty-six inches in length, (net after trimming or squaring,) or double the length of the Iinished product, and twenty inches, net, in width. In this old method or process af ter the first step of rolling the ingot into the bar-plate the succeeding rolling steps all take place repeatedly in the same direction, all such rolling steps being continually in the direction of the width of the plate-bar afterV the initial rolling of the ingot into the plate bar. This successive and continual rolling in the same direction injures the strength and quality of the metal and causes the iinished product of thin sheets or plates produced to have toolittle coherence, strength, and tenacity except in a direction across the grain or ber of the metal produced by the continuous rollings or drawings of the metal in one direction, and in this old method or process after the first step of rolling the ingot into the bar-plate all the numerous succeeding rolling steps involve the handling and the passing again and again between the or method of rolling is slow, laborious, and l expensive, and in addition to this, even in the most modern and economical of the old methods, the ingot is only reduced at its first or initial heat rolling step to a bar-plate about three-eighths inch in thickness, and the metal requires after being sheared into bars to be subjected to a separate reheating step before further rolling and before it is reduced to the thickness of the singles, which is about onetenth of an inch, suitable for matching or superimposing and rolling in pairs or packs of two.

It is the object of the present invention to provide a simple, efficient, and practical process or method of rolling iron or steel ingots into thin pla-tes or sheets, such as are required for use in the manufacture of tin-plate, by which these objections or difficulties may be obviated or overcome, by which a much better quality of thin sheets or plates may be produced in respect to ductility, strength, and toughness than is produced bythe old methods, and by which much time and labor and cost of manufacture may be saved.

The present invention consists in the means or process employed to practical-l y accomplish this important object or resultthat is to say, it consists in the new process or method ot` rolling iron or steel ingots into thin plates or sheets of definite or required dimensions, comprising the following series or combination of successive steps:

First. Rolling the ingot, of any convenient weight and dimensions, into what may for sake of convenience and distinction be termed a wide billet-bar about twenty inches wide by about 1.808 inches in thickness and thirty or forty feet, more or less, in length, according to the weight and size of the ingot, the Width dimensions being preferably one of the dimensions of the singles or of the finished product designed to be produced. (Forconvenience and clearness the process will be described, for example, as practiced in making tin-plate sheets of the particular size, twenty inches by twenty-eight inches, it of course being understood that for other sizes the figures or dimensions given will vary accordingly.)

Second. Cutting or shearing this wide billet-bar, while still retaining its initial heat, into billets or pieces twenty inches by twentyeight inches by 1.808 inches, the length dimensions corresponding to one of the dimensions of the singles or of the finished product designed to be producedin the case supposed.

Third. Rolling these wide billets or pieces, while still retaining their initial heat, in the cross direction from that of the previous rolling-that is to say, in their twenty-inch direction-into thin bars, each, say, twentyeight inches wide by eighty inches in length and by .i5 inch in thickness, by passing the same back and forth between reversing-rolls, so that the rolling action upon the metal in this step is alternately in opposite directions.

Fourth. Continuing the rolling of these wide thin bars at the saine initial heat and in the direction of their length into a long wide Q thin plate about twenty-eightinches wide by thirty-four feet in length and about one-tenth inch in thickness, which for convenience and distinction may be called singles-plate. This final rolling action at the initial or first heat reduces the ingot to the thickness of the singles and is preferably performed bya continuous train ot' five stands of rolls.

Fifth. Shearing the wide thin singles-plate thus produced into singles ready to match, the same being each twenty inches, net, or twenty and one-fourth inches by twenty-eight inches by about one-tenth inch in thickness.

Sixth. Matching or superimposing the singies, reheating, and further rolling in pairs or packs ot' two in the cross direction from the last previous rollingthat is to say, in the direction of the length of the singlesthus extending the length of the pair to about fifty-six inches, net.

Seventh. Folding or doubling the pair, reheating, and again rolling in packs of four, thus again doublingthelength to about fiftysix inches, net.

Eighth. Finally', again doubling,reheating, and rolling in packs of eight or eight thicknesses until the sheets are reduced to the required gage, their length being again'doubled to about iifty-six inches, net, or twice the length of the finished productin the case supposed.

By this new or improved process it will thus be seen that the original ingot is reduced to the thickness of the singles, about one-tenth inch, at a single heat, the first or initial heat thus saving the time, labor, and expense incident to one reheating over the most modern and improved methods heretofore in use; also, that by the new process the direction of the rolling is changed or crossed twice instead of but once, as in the oid process, in which all the rolling from the small bar, three-eight-hs inch thick, down to the finished gage takes place in the same direction without any crossing or alternation. For this reason the new process produces a greatly superior product in respect to ductility, strength, and toughness of the thin sheets, especially for Withstanding folding or drawing strains at right angles to the direction of the last rolling, as the successive crossings of the direction of rolling tends to interweave the grain or fiber IOO IOS

IIO

.produced by each successive -cross-rolling,

and by reason of the successivecrossing or alternation of the direction of rolling the metal does not receive anything like the punishment,'exhaustion, or strain that it does when the major portion of the rolling (from the small three-eighths-inch bar down to the thin` gage required) takes place all in one direction, as in the old process, and by the new process also much annoyance, time, and labor is saved by reason of the fact that the small rolling unit (the eight-inch by twentyinch by three-eighths-inch bar) is entirely dispensed with.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, to enable the invention to be more readily understood by those skilled in the art, I have illustrated in a conventional or diagrammatical manner at Figures 1 to 13 the ingot or metal being rolled in various successive steps or stages of the process, andat Fig. 14 have illustrated in a conventional or diagrammatic manner an apparatus, system, or arrangement of rolling-mills and machinery suitable for practicing the invention.

In the drawings, A, Fig. l, represents the ingot of any suitable size-say twelve inches by, twenty inches by four feet or more in length; B, Fig. 2, the wide billet-barsay twenty inches by .8 inchfby twenty, thirty, or forty feet in length; C, Fig. 3, the wide billetsay twenty inches by twenty-eight inches by 1.8 inches-into which the billet-bar is sheared or cut; D, Fig. 4, the wide plate (twenty-eight inches by eighty inches by .45 inches) into which the billets are rolletLin the cross direction from the last rolling by passing the same back and forth in opposite directions between reversing-rolls; E, Fig. 5, the wide singlesplate into which the wide plates D are rolled, (the same being, say, twenty-eight inches wide by thirty-four feet in length by one-tenth inch in thickness.) This represents the reduction at the first or initial heat of the metal.

F, Fig. 6, represents the singles into which the singles-plate is cut, the same being, say, twenty inches by twenty-eight inches by onetenth inch; G, Fig. 7, a pair'of the singles matched and reheated ready for further rolling in pairs or packs of two; K, Fig. 8, the pair reduced in thickness and doubled in length by rolling; L, Fig. 9, the pair doubled, reheated, and ready for rolling in packs of four; M, Fig. 10, the pack of four doubled in length and reduced in thickness by the next rolling; N, Fig. 11, the pack of four folded and doubled and reheated and ready for rolling in packs of eight; O, Fig. l2, the pack of eight rolled and extended in length, and P, Fig. 13, the finished sheet twenty inches by twenty-eight inches by 1.8 inch in thickness formed bycutting and trimming the pack of eight and separating the sheets thus formed.

The apparatus, conventionally or diagrammatically indicated in Fig. 14 as suitable for having, preferably, four horizontal andv one or two pair of vertical rolls between which the ingot is passed back and forth until it is reduced to about 1.8 inches in thickness, a billet-bar-shearing mechanism e, having feedtable f, transverse conveyers g g', a series of automatic reversing bar rolling-mills h; having each a feed-table h', a continuous rollingmill k, having, preferably, five stands of rolls arranged tandem, a rotary shear mechanism m for shearing the singles-plate into singles, a series of rotary heating-furnaces n for heating the singles in pairs and packs of fours and eights, and a series of automatic finishingmills for rolling the packs of twos and fours and eights; and q q q2 indicate engines and r r reversing-gear mechanisms for the ingotmill CZ and the automatic reversing bar-mill h. Any other suitable kind or arrangement of mills and apparatus may, however, be used in practicing the invention. A

As in this invention the ingot is reduced at a single heat-the first or initial heat-to the thickness of the singles, and` as the singles-plate thus produced at a single heat is sheared into singles ready for matching, the singles areV by this process produced of uniform size, weight, and dimensions, so that they match or superimpose accurately and without loss or waste of metal. In the processes heretofore in use where the singles are produced from separate small bars repeatedly rolled they always differ more or less in dimensions and thickness, however carefully they may be handled and heated to match together, and this causes a large Waste of metal in trimming or cropping. By my process this loss or waste of material is almost entirely saved. After the singles are produced the successive reheatings and rollings in packs of twos, fours, and eights are or may be the same as heretofore practiced.

The invention may also beused for manu-V facturing sheets or plates of various sizes and thicknesses. If thin sheets or plates are not desired, one or more of the pack-rolling steps may be omitted.

I claim- IOO IIO

l. The process or method of rolling iron or steel ingots into finished product thin sheets or plates of definite lengths and widths, suitable for tin-plate, consisting in first rolling the ingot into a long, wide billet-bar, then shearing such wide billet-bar into billets or bars whose length corresponds to one of the dimensions of the singles or of the finished product to be produced, then rolling such wide billets or bars in the cross direction from the first rolling into a long, thin singlesplate, then shearing the singles-plate into sin gles, then matching, reheating and rolling the singles successively in packs of twos fours and eights in the cross direction from the last preceding rolling, substantially as specified.

2. The process or method of rolling iron or steel ingots into finished product thin sheets or plates of deiinite lengths and widths suitable for tin-plate, consisting in rolling theingot, shearing it While hot into pieces corresponding in length to the length of the singles or of the finished product, cross-rolling such pieces into a long thin singles-plate Without reheating,and then shearing the saine into singles and matching, reheating and rolling in packs, substantially as specified.

3. The process herein described, consisting in the following successive steps, first rolling the ingot into a wide billet-bar; second, shearing it into wide billets or bars whose length corresponds to that of the singles or ofthe finished product; third, cross-rolling these Wide billets or pieces in the direction of their Width Without reheating; fourth, continuing the rolling Without reheating until the saine is reduced to a long, wide singles-plate; fifth, shearing the singles-plate into singles; sixth, matching, reheating and rolling in pairs or packs of two; seventh, folding or doubling the pair, reheating and rolling in packs of four; and, eighth, doubling, reheating and rolling in packs of eight, substantially as specified.

4. The process herein described, consisting in the following successive steps: first, rolling the ingot into a wide billet-har whose Width corresponds to the width of the singles or of the finished product to be produced; second, shearing it into Wide billets or hars whose length corresponds to that of the singles7 or of the finished product; third, cross-rolling -these wide billets or pieces in the direction of their Width without reheating; fourth, continuing the rolling Without reheating until the saine is reduced to a long, Wide singlesplate; fifth, shearing the singles-plate into singles sixth,matching, reheating and rolling in pairs or packs of two; seventh, folding or doubling the pair, reheating and rolling in packs of four; and, eighth, doubling, reheating and rolling in packs of eight, substantially as specified.

5. The process of rolling iron or steel ingots into thin sheets or plates of definite lengths and Widths, consisting in first rolling the ingot in opposite directions by passing it back and forth between rolls into a billet-bar, then shearing it While hot into billets or bars corresponding in length to the length of the singles or of the finished product, then cross-rolling such billets or bars in opposite directions by passing them back and forth between reversing rolls in the direction of their width, without reheating, and further rolling` the same continuously into a long, thin singles-plate Without reheating, and then shearing into singles and matching, reheating and rolling in packs, substantially as specified.

6. The processor method of rolling iron or steel ingots into sheets or plates, consisting in first rolling the ingots, then shearing, then cross-rolling Without reheating, then shearing into singles and then reheating and rollin'g in packs in the cross direction from the last preceding rolling, substantially as specified.

Dated June 20, 190i.

t EDWIN NORTON. lvVitnesses:

HENRY F. AKIN, T. S. WHEELER. 

